WASHINGTON DIARY: Stave off a military intervention —Dr Manzur Ejaz

If some circles of the Pakistani intelligentsia believe that a new military government can reverse the country’s devastating trends, they are sadly mistaken. The military, as an institution, is not structured to run a complex state and if they try again, the outcome will be even more disastrous

The US’s promises of assistance, passage of the18th Amendment, the Benazir Income Support Programme (BISP) and many other high sounding claims have not delivered much to the common citizen. Police brutality and violence against women and the poor are continuing unabated despite the efforts of the rejuvenated courts. It appears that the entire political setup has miserably failed to cope with the continuously deteriorating socio-economic problems. What could be expected in such a bleak environment?

Contrary to common perception, the US has no interest in dealing with Pakistan’s problems of governance. And, even if the US or some sections of its government harbour the illusions of remaking Pakistani society, it has no leverage when it comes to the self-interest of Pakistan’s ruling elites. During his time, the so-called closest ally of the US, General Pervez Musharraf, continued doing what he thought was in his best interest. Despite significant economic assistance from the international community in the form of aid and the rescheduling of mammoth debts, the economy did not get any firm traction. The proliferation of consumer goods through printing money brought more misery and inflation to the country. Furthermore, the state of governance got worse during the Musharraf era as only jihadis and the rich classes prospered.

As a matter of fact, the disintegration of society and spiralling socio-political anarchy, from General Zia to General Musharraf, indicate that the Pakistani military’s ability to run a society is even worse than that of corrupt politicians. It is a commonly accepted fact that corruption, nepotism and mafia-like grabbing of state and private resources entered Pakistani society during the rule of Ziaul Haq and continued corroding the societal organism of Pakistan.

During the 1990s when Benazir Bhutto and Mian Nawaz Sharif were taking turns as prime ministers, the military continued calling the shots. Of course both major political parties, the PPP and the PML-N, embraced the model of corruption set in motion during the Zia regime, but the basic responsibility lies with the military that was controlling all key decision making processes. Therefore, if some circles of the Pakistani intelligentsia believe that a new military government can reverse the country’s devastating trends, they are sadly mistaken. The military, as an institution, is not structured to run a complex state and if they try again, the outcome will be even more disastrous.

Being an eternal optimist, I believe that the present military leaders are aware of their institution’s limitations. They would (or should) have scrutinised their own performance of governance over the last 30 years and would have drawn the appropriate conclusions. My belief is based on the military’s decision to tackle the issue of extremism by occasional behind-the-scenes intervention to strengthen institutions like the judiciary. For now, one cannot blame the military for bad governance but one should not hope or expect that it can do a better job without the help of political formations. Ultimately, it is the political setup that will make or break the system.

It appears that the major political parties and their leaders are continuing with the morbid Zia political model. Besides the unnecessary delays in the restoration of the judiciary and undoing of the 17th Amendment, the PPP has miserably failed in addressing the economic situation and other matters related to good governance. Devastating load shedding of power is a symptom of the PPP’s inability to undertake any major initiative that can put the system back on track. It appears that more energy was spent on scheming to make money out of this miserable situation rather than solving it.

The PML-N has done no better in Punjab, where it had a free hand to rule. The number of PML-N legislators with fake degrees and corruption records are no different than its competitors. And both major parties have not hesitated to award election tickets to those who were forced to resign because of their fake degrees. If this is the example that major political parties are setting, then what moral authority do they have to ask the citizens to obey the law? No wonder then that there is no writ of law in the country.

In this backdrop, the section of the intelligentsia that believes Zardari’s ouster will start a new era of good governance are going to be extremely disappointed. As a matter of fact, Asif Ali Zardari’s rise to the presidency was a symptom of impending political paralysis. After all, with all the baggage he carried, he was elected with thumping majorities. Everyone voting for him knew the ethical problems he had but they did not care because they were no different from him. Therefore, Pakistan’s political paralysis is not person-specific and will not go away with one person’s removal.

It is quite clear that the existing political setup is outdated and cannot solve Pakistan’s chronic ills. Both the PPP and the PML-N have no wherewithal to reform the system. There is such a huge political vacuum that even a party like the MQM can get a good traction in Punjab and other provinces if it does not commit follies like it did in the past. Nonetheless, such circumstances have the potential of a huge social upheaval to create new political formations, after all the vacuums are filled one way or the other.

The writer can be reached at manzurejaz@yahoo.com